STAFF working for Lloyds Bank in Wiltshire and Swindon could be among thousands facing the axe following the announcement 200 branches are to close.

A spokesman this morning said they could not confirm at this stage if any of the 3,000 job cuts would affect staff in the area.

“It’s too early to say,” they said.

People's banking habits are being blamed for the closures, as more are now turning to the internet to manage their accounts and make transactions. But the news comes despite the bank making a reported 101 per cent increase in pre-tax profits.

Lloyds has branches in many town centres including Royal Wootton Bassett, Devizes, Marlborough, Trowbridge, Chippenham, Melksham, Westbury and Warminster, Swindon centre and Old Town as well as Highworth and Cricklade.

The company, which is nine per cent owned by the Government and also owns Halifax, is already carrying out 9,000 redundancies and closing 200 branches.

Today the bank said the cost-cutting programme announced in 2014 to axe 9,000 jobs will be extended and the "expected lower for longer interest rate environment" will see the new cuts come into effect by the end of 2017.

The Bank of England is widely expected to cut interest rates from 0.5 per cent to 0.25 per cent next week as the fallout from the Brexit vote intensifies.

Lloyds is targeting £1.4 billion in cost savings by the end of next year.

The bank made the announcement alongside results for the first half of the year, which saw statutory profits more than double to £2.5bn, but the lender warned that Brexit could have an adverse impact on its future performance.

"Given the uncertainty, it is too early to determine the impact on our formal longer term guidance at this stage. However, while the business will remain highly capital generative, it is possible that this capital generation may be somewhat lower in future years than previously guided," the bank said.

The bank made the announcement alongside results for the first half of the year, which saw statutory profits more than double to £2.5 billion, but the lender warned that Brexit could have an adverse impact on its future performance.

"Given the uncertainty, it is too early to determine the impact on our formal longer term guidance at this stage. However, while the business will remain highly capital generative, it is possible that this capital generation may be somewhat lower in future years than previously guided," the bank said.

Chief executive Antonio Horta-Osorio added that, following the referendum, the outlook for the UK economy is "uncertain" and a "deceleration of growth seems likely".

"The UK, however, enters this period of uncertainty from a position of strength, following continued private sector deleveraging, significantly improved mortgage affordability and low levels of unemployment," he said.

Rob MacGregor, national officer at Unite, warned against "cutting too far too fast" and said that the union would do everything in its power to oppose the cuts.

TUC general secretary Frances O'Grady urged the Government to act now to secure jobs and investment before "thousands of working people pay the price of Brexit with the loss of their job".